


Time Marches On

by Anonanonanonana



Series: Vampires and Queens [4]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/M, Vampire!Oliver, death is not permanent in this world, immortal!felicity, vampire!felicity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-04
Updated: 2017-04-30
Packaged: 2018-04-29 20:47:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 15,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5141948
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonanonanonana/pseuds/Anonanonanonana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Immortality is not something Felicity wanted, but it's what she has. Keeping her promise to Oliver will be harder than anything else she's endured.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

Two hundred years. It’s multiple life times to some, but for Oliver and Felicity that was the history behind them. They had lost their loved ones along the way, time ravaging even their vampire family, but Felicity’s immortal blood had nourished Oliver enough to keep him by her side. And now, after two centuries, time was catching up. He was aging, and there was no more denying it. Felicity had to choose, to keep her immortality or to embrace her vampiric side and age with Oliver. They hadn’t been able to have children and their family and friends were gone or so far removed from their initial lifetimes that they considered them legends - it was only them, and she couldn’t imagine roaming the Earth without him.

Felicity had contemplated her decision as Oliver stroked her hair, her head on his chest as they lay naked in the bed they always came back to. Since Thea’s death they had maintained Queen Mansion quietly, letting local gossip and folklore speculate about the occupants, sometimes slipping away for months at a time to exchange staff before returning home again. Thea had married a human and their surprisingly human children were raised outside of the vampire world. The mansion was a target still at that time, but now the vampire world was nearly empty. Even the hunters had become disorganized. Oliver had contemplated contacting his great great great grandnieces and nephews, to give them back their rightful inheritance, but how to explain who he was held him back.

Felicity sighed as her husband knowingly rubbed the back of her neck, her hand stilling on his abs.

“You’re thinking too hard,” he whispered.

She grimaced. Of course he knew she was troubled, he always knew. “I’m just considering our options.”

His hand stilled its movements. “Options?”

She nodded against his chest and kissed his pectoral muscle before looking up at his face. He shifted to meet her gaze.

“You’re aging, Oliver, and I can’t live without you.”

He wiped a tear from her face with his free hand before cupping her cheek. “We still have lots of time, Felicity.” He spoke quietly, hating to admit that there would be an end at all.

She shook her head, sitting up and taking his hands in hers. “Not enough. My blood isn’t enough for you anymore, so I need to start drinking again, too.”

Oliver groaned in disapproval and pulled his hands from hers to sit up beside her. “Felicity, as much as I love the idea of you drinking regularly from me again, I can’t let you give up your life for me.”

She huffed out a laugh. “Give up my life? Oliver, you are my life!”

He frowned and took her hands in his. “Sweetheart, please, listen to me. You are remarkable. Even before you had access to your immortality you were so incredibly special. You cannot take that away from the universe, not to match my aging. When I am gone you will find a new way.” He gripped her hands tighter as she closed her eyes, holding back a sob. “Felicity, please, don’t cry. We have had lifetimes together, and we still have more years ahead of us. I’m not going to leave you willingly or easily. But when the time comes I want you to keep living. The world would be a dark place without you.”

She opened her eyes and met his gaze, both of them shedding tears at the thought of being apart.

“Promise me?” Oliver whispered, bringing one hand up to stroke her cheek.

She nodded slowly before turning to kiss his palm. “I don’t know how, but I’ll find a way.”

He smiled before leaning in to capture her lips with his, pushing her back onto the mattress in the process. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders to hold him close. Oliver moaned as Felicity’s teeth scraped his tongue and she began to suck. He pulled back just enough to mumble against her lips, “I thought we agreed there’d be none of that.”

“I need to taste you, Oliver. I won’t drink much, just enough to feel the rush.” He opened his eyes to find hers staring back. He could never deny her anything so he nodded.

She smiled triumphantly before bringing her lips back to his. He allowed her to roll them so she could straddle him. She spoke softly as she sat up, “I think we should do this together. It’s been so long since we drank and came together.”

His cock twitched at the thought and he moaned. “That sounds like a brilliant idea.”

Felicity sank down on him, setting the pace. Oliver followed her lead, both knowing the touches and kisses that would build them up from years upon years of practice.

As the sensations began to peak he rolled them over and ran his teeth along her collarbone. “I’m close, sweetheart.” He licked where he was wanting to bite, waiting for her to ensure she could reach the spot on his neck but his hips maintained the pace she had set.

He shivered when he felt her tongue tasting his neck, the scrape of her teeth following it. “Almost there, baby.”

They both tilted their hips, letting him hit the spot inside her that made her arch her back. She grasped at his shoulder to pull herself back up to his neck.

“Yes, now, Oliver.” She nearly screamed and bit into him.

Oliver groaned at the feeling of her teeth sinking into him and sunk his own into her shoulder as she began to draw from him, escalating the sensations rushing through his body. Their rhythm quickened and Felicity bit down harder as her body began to shudder. The feel of her teeth in him and taste of her orgasm on his tongue pulled Oliver’s from him, and they held onto each other’s bodies as they both quaked and broke.

Felicity had closed the bite on Oliver’s neck as soon as he had come, ensuring she didn’t take too much, but Oliver was still drawing on her as they came down from their sexual high, keeping them both in the euphoric haze well beyond their orgasms. She giggled when he licked her shoulder, kissing the tender spot as it healed.

“Best idea ever,” he purred sleepily.

She smiled, rubbing the blood from his lips with her thumb as he hovered over her. “Good to know we still got it.”

He smiled and nuzzled her nose with his own. “Always.”

Felicity smiled thinking back to that day nearly a hundred years ago as she stroked her husband’s hand. They had so many more moments like that in their nearly three hundred years of marriage. But now it was his time to go. He had aged quickly in the last few years, going from 50 to 80 in so much less time than it had taken to go from 30 to 50, so she had been preparing for this, but this morning, waking to find him barely breathing had been a shock. And now as his heart slowed he looked at her with the same eyes she had fallen for as a teenager.

“Remember what you promised me, sweetheart?” His voice was raspy and slurred.

Felicity fought the tears and nodded. “I will keep going.”

He smiled, bringing his hand to her face one last time before his breathing halted. As his hand fell she caught it and sobbed. “For you, Oliver, always.”

Immortal Felicity Smoak had lived more than 300 years, most of it with vampire Oliver Queen by her side. But now she would walk the Earth alone, searching out the darkness and bringing it into the light.


	2. Running

**Star City - 2382**

Her feet hit the pavement quietly though her legs were straining. Even with her enhanced speed and stamina she was feeling the fatigue of this chase. “Why do they always run?” Felicity mumbled to herself, but her comm crackled to life in her ear and Curtis Holt’s voice answered.

“Because they’re scared of you.”

“I don’t know why,” she huffed at her partner. “I just want to help them.”

“They don’t know you’re not a hunter, speaking of which, three coming up behind you.”

Felicity groaned. The return of hunters and the surge in made vampires when she thought the last had died years ago was making her life difficult. If she had known that peaceful charity work to help the ever present poor would turn into her spending nights chasing down new vampires with Curtis in her ear she would’ve moved Oliver’s crypt from beneath Queen mansion to the Smoak estate in Italy when she had the chance. “But my luck I’d be chasing Roman vampires instead,” she thought to herself and sighed as she rounded a building and stopped in the middle of a dark street.

“Which way, Terrific?” She looked around as she waited for her answer.

Curtis mumbled in response.

“Curtis!”

Her partner sighed. “He disappeared. I don’t know where he went.”

“Shit!” Felicity stomped her foot. That was the third one this week. Inevitably they’d figure out they can stave off the harsh feelings of the change with blood and then the hunters would get them, hopefully before they drop a human body. Or they’d naively wander out during the day and burn. She closed her eyes against the thought. There had been too many charred bodies lately. “I’m coming back. We need to concentrate on finding who’s turning them.”

Curtis turned in his chair as Felicity entered the secure room in Queen mansion where they operated their secret base of operations. The property was a little outside the city where she spent her evenings, but it was safer for Curtis to keep his distance from those she was chasing. Most days she’d leave at dusk, often not returning until dawn.

“Felicity,” Curtis stood as he addressed her, wringing his hands. “I’m sorry, I don’t know how I lost him. His identity chip wasn’t working.”

She gave him a sad, half-hearted smile. “It’s not your fault, Curtis. Something is going on that we haven’t figured out yet.”

His face lit up a little at her reassurance. “I may have a way to try to do that.” As he turned back to the computers Felicity took a seat in her own chair and gave him her attention.

**Tragliata, Italy – 2325**

For the first time in nearly a decade Felicity found the strength to leave Star City, making her way to her family’s old estate outside Rome. As the sun’s first rays broke over the horizon she stood in the same spot where Oliver saved her centuries prior, where she had first seen the sun as an immortal.

“I thought I’d find you here.” Edward Smoak’s voice was gentle, floating on the breeze behind her.

“You did ask me to come,” Felicity responded.

Her father chuckled. “Three months ago.”

Felicity wiped the tears from her cheeks and sniffled before turning around. “I’m sorry, I just couldn’t leave until now.”

The other immortal sighed. “Oliver’s actually why I invited you here.”

The blonde scrunched her face in confusion.

“I think you should move him to a crypt here on our property. It’ll be safer amid what’s coming.”

Felicity shook her head. “I can’t do that. Star City was our home. He wouldn’t want to be somewhere else without me.”

Edward nodded. “Then you come here, too.”

She wiped more tears from her face as she shook her head. “I can’t. I can’t leave everything like that. I’m making good on my promise to him and have decided on a few ways to get involved in saving people again.”

Her father sighed. “The vampires are all but gone, and something worse is set to take their place. Something fierce and unyielding. I’ve seen this cycle before. It’s beginning already in North America. I give it 50 years or so before we get some idea of what’s to come, and then a few centuries of finding a balance when it will be dangerous for everyone, including us.”

“Why ask me to move here?”

“I don’t want you at the epicenter.”

Felicity smiled. “Thank you for your concern, but I can’t leave Oliver. Or my city.”

Edward nodded. “I understand.” He smiled. “But it was worth a try. At least I get a visit out of this.”

Felicity walked towards her father and embraced him. “I’m sorry I’ve been distant.”

He kissed his daughter’s temple. “It’s okay, Felicity, I understand.”

Felicity shook her head and pulled away. “No, it isn’t. You’re all I have left and I pushed you away. I know you were there, after he died. And I ignored you because it just hurt so bad.”

“Shh, shh.” Edward pulled his daughter back in to his chest. “I wasn’t upset, Felicity.”

“Are you upset about me wanting to stay in Star City?”

Edward shook his head. “No, I’m not upset. Worried, but not upset. I’d relocate there if I could, but I’m needed here. Just promise me one thing?”

Felicity looked up at her father’s serious gaze and nodded.

“If you ever need anything or ever feel like it isn’t safe anymore, you tell me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who read Love Bites: Surprise! Edward Smoak wasn't dead! But how that revelation became known to Felicity is going to be part of another fic in the Vampires and Queens series that I haven't started posting yet. The one where we find out what Malcolm was up to!


	3. How Felicity met Curtis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night Felicity Smoak met Curtis Holt, changing both their lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Present Day" for this story is 2382, so Felicity and Curtis met 4 years prior to their activities at the start of Chapter 2.

**Star City - 2378**

Felicity felt the worn stone under her hand. The texture had become smoother with time, the rough granite worn from the decades of her hand resting there almost daily. She took a deep breath and pulled her hand away to wipe the tear from her face. The first days after Oliver’s death she had refused to leave him at all, hoping that he’d wake up. But eventually she had to accept that he was gone. So she entombed him on the Queen property, where she could always be close to him, even closer when she leaned against the granite door to the mausoleum.

The alarm on Felicity’s watch alerted her that it was time to go. She had a charity event to attend. Her work with the poor had started more than 50 years ago with simply bringing the homeless soup and bread, now she used her tech expertise to ensure that charities acted ethically. Tonight’s fundraiser hosted by the Old Glades Society would bring in Star’s elite and their President was known to enjoy the finer things in life, well beyond his own means. She was certain he was skimming and it was going to stop.

Felicity dressed in her dark mission clothes and put her hair up under a dark hat, making her way into the city just as dusk fell. The staff were already preoccupied with early guest arrivals so she entered through the kitchen of the Society’s building and quickly found her way to the offices. The hall seemed empty but she stopped to sniff the air, ensuring it was truly empty. She pulled out her electromagnetic scrambler and shut down the security sensors before hacking the lock on the President’s office. Closing the door behind her she waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. Leaving the light off, she slowly made her way to the server and planted the small bug that would send her the information on the guests and their donations as they came in tonight. After she obtains the information she needs she can remotely send a pulse that would melt the bug, avoiding its detection or her need to come back.

Felicity made her way back to the door and put her ear against it, listening and sniffing. Someone had walked past while she was in here, but she couldn’t pick up anything currently nearby. She cracked the door and peered out. At the end of the hall she heard shuffling, but the way to the kitchen was clear. She quickly closed the door behind her and reset the lock before starting towards the end of the hall. Her plan had been to leave the sensors deactivated so they would think it was an oversight instead of a manual glitch, but a muffled scream stopped her in her tracks.

Breathing deep she took one step forward before throwing her head back to groan and turn around, running towards the other end of the hall. As she peeked around the corner she saw two men dressed for the event against the wall. At first glance they seemed like a couple who found a quick escape to spend some time together, but Felicity smelled the death stench she recognized as a made vampire. The other was a human, a human whose hands trembled and flailed slightly against the vampire pushing him into the wall.

Without thinking Felicity stepped into the adjoining hall. “Hey! Get away from him!”

The vampire turned its head quickly, she could see the blood staining its mouth as it hissed in annoyance, “I’m eating!”

Felicity clenched her jaw. “You heard me! Get. Away. From him.”

The vampire released the man, who slumped down the wall to the floor, and laughed. “That’s okay. You look like you’ll taste even better.”

She snorted. “You have no idea.”

As an immortal her speed and strength matched that of even the oldest vampires, clearly surprising the unexpected creature she found in the hallway. It lunged for her but in a matter of seconds it found itself sprawled out over a broken table in an alcove. Felicity kicked him in the head to buy herself some time before picking up a table leg and ramming it through the vampire’s chest, turning it to dust.

Clearing her throat she turned back towards the human, whose wide eyes followed her every move as he held his hand over the bite on his neck.

“Are you alright?”

His mouth opened and closed a few times before he could speak. “What was that?”

“A vampire. Though I didn’t think there were any more around. But it was a made vampire, and young enough to not take me seriously, so obviously there must be another one around here somewhere.” The confusion on the man’s face made Felicity sigh. “I know it’s a lot to take in, but let’s just focus on your neck. Can I take a look?”

The man nodded but grimaced in pain. She squatted down beside him and slowly pulled his cold trembling fingers away to see the wound more clearly. It was a nasty bite and bleeding heavily. She had to act quickly.

“Okay, this is going to sound weird but I need to heal you and then we need to get you to a doctor for a transfusion. He took a lot from you.”

“Heal me? You have a cauterizer hidden in your pocket?”

Felicity smiled. “Just close your eyes.”

The man breathed deep and did as she asked. Letting her fangs descend Felicity cut the tip of her index finger and smeared the blood on the bite, watching the blood loss stop and the wound close.

“Okay…uh…what’s your name?”

The man opened his eyes. “Curtis. Curtis Holt.”

“Okay, Curtis. Let’s get you up and out of here.”

He nodded and let Felicity throw his arm over her shoulders and lead him out the emergency exit at the end of the hall. As they made their way towards her vehicle he chuckled and shook his head. “A vampire? Seriously?”

“Yep.”

“Are you a vampire?”

Felicity scrunched her nose. “Uh, kind of, but not really.”

Curtis snorted. “That’s not an answer.”

Felicity laughed, making Curtis smile despite the surreal circumstances he’d stumbled into. “Tell you what, Curtis. You let me get you fixed up and I’ll tell you everything.”


	4. Sword play

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the present, Curtis and Felicity look for a reason why they can't track the new vampires. In the past, we see how Oliver helped Felicity prepare for her current life.

Star City - 2382

Felicity wiped the fog from the mirror in the bathroom, still naked from her shower. She sighed as she took in the effect the last few decades has had on her body. After losing Oliver she had tested the limits of her immortality, avoiding food, activity, even water. It had taken her years to realize that not only was it not going to help her join him, she had also broken her promise to him. But she still pushed the limits, and it showed on her emaciated frame. Her nightly activities though had added muscle mass to her small body, making her unhealthy habits unnoticeable through her clothes.

Felicity sighed and went back to her post-shower regimen, drying her hair and dressing before making her way down to the tech room. She caught Curtis’s scent of sweet berries before she heard him, mumbling to himself as he worked on the adjustments to the long-distance infrared chip reader.

“Anything?”

He jumped at Felicity’s question. Turning quickly and smiling nervously. “You are really quite sneaky. And uh, no, nothing wrong with the detector, though I am adjusting its sensitivity. Maybe we can catch a residual signal on some of these deactivated chips.”

Felicity smiled. “Good thinking.”

The man visibly relaxed with her praise before turning back to his work.

Felicity frowned and cleared her throat, making her way towards his chair. “It’s not your fault you know.”

Curtis shook his head. “You brought me into this to help you and I haven’t been much help, so yeah, it is kind of my fault.”

Felicity snorted. “Curtis, I didn’t give you the code name ‘Mr. Terrific’ for nothing.”

Despite his darker skin tone she could see a blush coloring her partner’s cheeks. “I haven’t earned it lately,” he said quietly.

Felicity sighed and sat down next to him, catching his gaze as she handed him a small screwdriver. “I promise you, whatever is going on, it started long before I found you in that hallway. I don’t expect you to be omniscient, especially about the world _I_ still don’t know everything about.”

He gave her a small smile and nodded before taking the tool from her and turning back to his work. An hour later Felicity had the adjusted device in her hand ready to test its range on the outskirts of the city.

Tapping the com in her ear she heard Curtis confirm they were live as she made her way to the rooftop of an apartment building. “Test 1, max range, now,” she said as she pulled the trigger on the device.

Curtis’s voice responded immediately. “I’m reading a 2-block radius. A whole list of numbers I’m going to have to cross check with known residents to ensure it’s accurate, but I’m not seeing any anomalies.”

Felicity smiled. “Wow, two blocks. That’s pretty cool.”

Curtis snorted. “I’ll never get used to ‘cool’ meaning anything other than a temperature. That wasn’t part of the 21st century slang I learned in school.”

Felicity sighed. “There’s a lot of things they don’t teach you in school. I’m going to go find some lone strollers and see if we have any trouble reading any of them. If we’re lucky I’ll find a vamp to test it on, too, make sure it isn’t the body temperature affecting the infrared.”

After an uneventful night of testing their ID chip reader Felicity spent the day preparing for what she’d have to do next. Vampire hunting wasn’t Curtis’s favorite thing, especially when she brought out the swords, and his nervous energy was making her anxious for nightfall.

“Please stop pacing. I’m the only one who gets to do that.”

“Sorry, I’m just not a fan of you running through the dark looking for killers with sharp blades strapped to your back. Or, you know, them swinging around where they might hit someone.”

Felicity choked back a laugh and kept her back to Curtis so he wouldn’t see her smile. “Don’t worry, I’m well trained.”

“How did you learn to fight with swords anyway? Isn’t that like 10th century?”

Felicity bit her lip. “You should’ve seen what my husband could do with a bow and arrow.”

Curtis snorted and sat down in his chair. “At least you’re not using those.”

“I was never very good with a bow. My arms are too short for the draw and I shook too much to be accurate.”

“And you’re better with a sword? Why not a gun?”

Felicity tightened the strap across her chest and walked towards the stairs. “My husband wasn’t a fan of them.”

**

Star City – 2235

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Felicity scrunched her nose at Oliver.

“Felicity, I’m fine. I may have aged a bit, but not so much that I can’t spar with you.” He huffed out a laugh at how adorable his wife looked. “But if you keep looking at me like that I may suggest a different kind of physical activity.”

She shook her head and giggled. “Okay, then let’s do this.” When he cocked an eyebrow she glared and pointed her finger at him. “You know what I mean!”

Her husband chuckled and threw his shirt towards the wall of their home gym on the first floor of Queen Mansion. “So what did you want to work on today?”

Felicity sighed. “Since you said no to the shooting range I want a refresher on the sword work. It’s been, well, a while,” she huffed out a laugh thinking that 150 years was more than a while.

“Not archery?” He pretended to be hurt but she just laughed and shook her head.

“You know I’m no good at that!”

Oliver nodded and grabbed wooden swords from the glass-front case behind him. “Let’s start from the beginning so you can reacquaint yourself with the heft and footwork first.”

Felicity remembered more than she thought she would as her husband directed her through the various stances and approaches he knew. Her mind quickly filled in the blanks from her lessons two centuries prior and they moved on to filling the room with the clanging of metal on metal. As they replaced the practice swords back in the case next to their wooden counterparts she noticed Oliver breathing more heavily than usual.

“You okay?”

He nodded. “Yeah, just a bit winded.” He gave her a quick fake smile. “I’m good though.”

She stepped behind him and started to massage his shoulders, easing the tension she could feel in his muscles. “You’re sweaty. We should probably take this to the shower. Or bath. Maybe one full of bubbles.”

He turned and gave her a real smile this time before running his hands down her ribs to her waist. “Last time we did that we had bubbles everywhere.”

Felicity tilted her head and grinned. “Good thing I put the bench in the shower then, because what I was thinking of doing requires you sitting.”

Oliver groaned as he leaned down to capture his wife’s lips in a bruising kiss. His hands made their way around her hips, each taking a cheek to squeeze as she pushed herself against him. She broke the kiss and rubbed his nose with hers. “Or we could just do this here and then shower.”

Oliver nodded, wrapping his tongue around Felicity’s as her arms reached around him to massage his back, her fingers then scratching slightly at his ribs and delving down into his sweatpants, loosening them from his waist. He stepped out of them as she pushed him back towards the bench by the wall. As he sat down she pulled away from him to undress herself, throwing her clothes at her feet before taking her place in his lap.

She met his lips again and let her hands massage along his hips as he held her to his chest. He was slow to harden beneath her so she used one hand to stroke him. He broke his mouth from hers, gasping for breath. “Felicity, I don’t think this position is going to work.”

She nibbled at his ear before responding, “Just let me help you.”

He chuckled but turned his head to break her concentration on his neck and used one hand to remove hers from his groin. “I can tell this isn’t working, sweetheart. I’m sorry, my body isn’t what it used to be.”

She sighed, disappointed, but this wasn’t entirely a new event for them. “What if you feed first?”

Oliver kissed her mouth quickly as he rubbed her arms with his hands. “In the shower?”

She smiled and nuzzled his nose. “Sure.”

“Go get it started, I’ll finish picking up in here and try to get my mind in the zone.”

Felicity gave his face a pat before jumping up and running through the empty mansion naked. Oliver chuckled at her enthusiasm and grabbed their clothes, taking a quick look around the gym before turning off the lights and following his wife to their bathroom, taking the time alone to refocus his thinking. The betrayal he felt from his own body, especially when it came to being intimate, only made it more difficult to keep up with her. He took a deep breath as he entered their bedroom, the sound of the shower making him smile.

He stopped in the doorway to the bathroom to admire the ass that greeted him. Felicity was bent over, looking for something in the cabinet under the sink. He stepped towards her, unable to resist touching the smooth skin. When she stood up and leaned into him his blood rushed south. ‘There it is,’ he thought as his lips met her neck and his arm wrapped around her chest to pull her closer.

“I see you were able to clear your mind on the walk up here,” she murmured as she circled her hips back against him and held his arm against her.

He licked her earlobe, sucking on it lightly before whispering in her ear, “I’m suddenly very hungry.”

“We should do something about that then.”

He let her pull away and take his hand, leading him into the large shower. She handed him the bar of soap she had been looking for when he entered the room and he got to work rinsing them both off from their earlier workout. As her clean scent invaded his senses he felt his body react, making him grin at her.

“What?” Her face was still so innocent after all these years.

“You’re beautiful.”

Her giggle made his cock twitch and his fangs descended without permission. Her eyes widened as she licked her lips. “Sit down on the bench, Oliver.”

He did as she asked, holding out his arms to steady her as she straddled him. She nuzzled his nose before turning and presenting her neck to him, kissing his shoulder and nipping gently, letting him feel her elongated teeth without piercing the skin.

He licked his favorite spot on her throat before sinking his fangs into the tender flesh. She relaxed but moved her hips slightly to give his erection room between them as it hardened. The rush of the bite heightened their senses and gave them the edge they’d been waiting for. Lapping at her neck to close the wound Oliver readjusted her on his lap, feeling her heat surround him. Catching her half-lidded gaze he palmed her cheek and let her taste her blood on his lips as she rocked against him.

“Oliver,” she murmured against his lips. “I need leverage.”

He nodded and shifted to lift her off his lap. “Turn around with your hands against the wall.”

Felicity groaned. “God, yes, great idea.”

He laughed as she bent forward and wiggled her butt in anticipation. He gave one of her cheeks a light smack before positioning himself behind her and placing a kiss between her shoulder blades. As he set a slow but steady rhythm he laced the fingers on one hand with hers against the wall, leaving the other hand to reach around her, fondling her breasts and holding her close as she came. Her erratic thrusts made him lose his pacing but was enough for him to finish inside her.

Panting he leaned over her back, nuzzling her hair with his nose. “I think we need another shower.”

Her laugh echoed off the glass and she pulled him back under the spray to clean up.


	5. Happy holidays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity and Curtis continue to solve the mysterious vampire issue as the holidays approach. Flashback to the family time left behind.

Star City – 2382

Felicity could see her breath fogging in the frosty air as she perched on the balcony overlooking the alley between two clubs that had seen multiple vampire victims the last few nights. She didn’t feel the cold though as she waited in just her jeans and a sweatshirt. The Star City holiday tree glowed in the distance, making her sigh with memories of a life taken from her so long ago.

“The infrared sensors you placed at the street entrance are picking up movement,” Curtis’ voice crackled through the coms.

Felicity tapped the unit in her ear twice in confirmation, not wanting her voice to spook whatever it was headed her way. She set the ID chip reader for the small radius needed and turned it on.

Curtis sighed. “Nothing yet.”

Felicity saw a young woman slowly walk into the alley making her way under the balcony, so she turned the chip reader off and then on again.

“Nothing,” Curtis said again.

Felicity bit her lip to stop from groaning in frustration. She could smell that the woman was a made vampire and everyone in the last hundred years has been given a chip at birth, so she had to have one. ‘Unless whoever is turning them removes them in the process?’ She thought to herself. ‘Well only one way to find out.’

Felicity jumped from the balcony, landing gracefully behind the woman and startling her. Felicity noted the adrenaline coming off her, she wasn’t the killer from the last few nights. She was newly made and confused. The immortal raised her hands in a calming gesture. “Hi. I’m not going to hurt you. I know you’re scared. I can help.”

The woman shivered. “Where am I?”

“Star City. Specifically Glades Avenue, it’s where all the happenin’ nightlife is nowadays.”

“Star City?” The woman shook her head. “I…I’ve never heard of that. I’m from Starling.”

Curtis nearly choked over the com. “The city hasn’t been called that in a really long time. Could she be like you? Hibernated or something?”

Felicity took a deep breath. “What do you remember? Do you know what year it is?”

The woman put a hand to her forehead, swaying slightly. “I don’t feel well. And it’s so cold.”

“Woah, woah, woah.” Felicity stepped forward to help steady her. “It’s okay. My name’s Felicity. I can help you.”

“I’m…I…” She sighed, standing up straight and stepping away from Felicity before turning her full gaze on the blonde. Tilting her head she continued, “I’m the first of many.”

Felicity’s brow furrowed. “What?”

The woman gave her a wicked smile, showing off her fangs. “I’m supposed to eat until they find me and you look delicious.”

Felicity took a step back, positioning herself in the center of the alley. “Until who finds you?”

The woman didn’t answer, choosing instead to lunge clumsily. Felicity pulled her sword from its sheath and quickly ended the vampire by decapitation. She cleaned the blade on a snowbank before scooping up some of the ashes. “Curtis, do you think we can get DNA from ashes?”

“Uhh…not if it’s broken down as part of the body dissolution process.”

She sighed. “Dammit. Well, I’m bringing some in anyway. At the very least maybe we’ll learn more about how vampires poof.”

Curtis chuckled. “Poof?”

Felicity crinkled her nose, also gathering some of the bloody snow before making her way towards the street. “Yeah, you know, grr then poof, ashes.”

“Whatever you say Mrs. Queen.” She always smiled when he called her that.

“I also got some blood from the killing blow we can run.”

Curtis greeted her as she made her way into the mansion. “I will take the samples and get the analysis started.”

“Thanks, Curtis. I have to go find something in one of the rooms. Yell for me if you finish before I’m back.”

Felicity made her way to what was once Moira’s study. It was a dusty storage room now, but the information her mother-in-law and she had accumulated on the other vampire families was in there somewhere. When the Bertinellis fought to eliminate the Queens and Merlyns the two women had meticulously kept notes, hoping that should future generations run into trouble, they’d have what they needed to survive.

After moving several boxes and quickly taking stock of the contents of a few more, Felicity found the files she was looking for. They were labeled “First of Many”.

**

London - 2029

Oliver fidgeted as they stood by the elevator that would take them to his sister’s penthouse. They simply needed to ring the bell. Felicity smiled encouragingly as she took his hands in hers.

He cleared his throat. “Are you sure Thea wants to see us?”

“Of course she does! You’re her brother. And it’s the holidays.”

He sighed, catching his wife’s eyes as he frowned. “She left Starling for a reason. I respect that. I don’t want her to feel she has to run again.”

Felicity’s shoulders shrugged in understanding. “I spoke to Roy this morning. They’re okay with this. She’s missed you and is excited for you to meet your niece and nephew.”

He squeezed her fingers as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Our niece and nephew.”

She smiled and leaned her forehead against his chin. “Yeah, our family.”

He finally gave her a small smile, reaching out to ring the bell. The elevator immediately began to make its way down – someone had been waiting for them. He looked anxiously at the smiling blonde.

“See, they’re excited to see us, too.” She gave him a quick peck on the lips as the elevator stopped.

When the doors opened Thea greeted them with a smile. “Ollie!”

Oliver dropped his wife’s hands and stepped forward, embracing his sister in a suffocating hug. “Speedy! God, I’ve missed you.”

The brunette sniffled into his shoulder. “I’m so glad you made it. It’s been too long.”

“Almost 10 years. Way too long.”

Thea pulled away and looked up at her brother’s face. “And yet you haven’t aged a day.”

He smiled. “I owe that to my wife it seems.”

Thea looked past him at Felicity, her grin holding steady. “The kids are really looking forward to meeting you guys. I’ve told them all about you. Except, you know, the biting thing.”

Oliver chuckled before he turned to tug his wife away from the doors, allowing them to close. “So no signs of vampirism then?”

Thea sighed. “Nope. They are both very much wholly human.”

He put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed, kissing the crown of her head. “Good.”

Later in the evening, Felicity settled into Oliver’s lap, watching Roy direct the kids as they got ready for bed. Thea settled on a chair across from them, setting four wine glasses and a bottle of red on the coffee table. Felicity stroked her fingers through her husband’s hair as he smiled adoringly at his sister.

“The kids are amazing, Thea. You and Roy have a great family.” His voice caught as he continued, “…a great life. I’m so happy for you.”

Thea huffed out a laugh and wiped her eyes. “I don’t remember you being this sappy, Ollie. God, what are you going to be like when you have kids of your own.”

He smiled as Felicity kissed his temple and Roy sat on the arm of the chair next to Thea.

“I’m actually surprised you guys are still just the two of you,” Roy added casually as he poured the wine.

Felicity and Oliver caught each other’s eyes before she cleared her throat to answer. “We’ve had some trouble with that. My physiology doesn’t seem to be conducive to us being parents.”

Thea’s face fell. “I’m sorry. That’s…”

“Just the way it is.” Oliver gave his sister a somber half smile. “We’ve accepted it.”

“As a trade-off for potentially living longer,” Felicity added quietly.

Roy handed them their wine glasses then raised his for a toast. “Well, here’s to family. And you’re welcome to come play with our kids any time you want.”

The four smiled, clinking their glasses.

“Happy Hanukkah.”

“Merry Christmas.”


	6. Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity hates mysteries and Curtis needs a drink to deal with the new information they encounter.

Starling City - 2057

Claire Wilkins didn’t consider herself to be anything special. She had lost both parents to a car accident when she was young, and without grandparents to raise her she ended up part of the foster system. She was one of the lucky ones though, the first family to take her in were good people, and she managed to get good grades and finish college. Though they had never adopted her, she moved back to her hometown to be close to the only family she had.

Her mind was full of thoughts of her job and new friends at Merlyn Global as she walked home just after dusk, unaware of the figure watching her. Claire lived and worked in a good part of town, she never knew she had anything to worry about. As holiday shoppers scurried past her she turned onto a quiet residential street towards her apartment. She startled when a hand cupped her elbow but turned towards whoever was attempting to gain her attention, the needle painlessly entering her neck before she could question them. Claire’s eyes widened as she took in the last thing she would see as a mortal – her murderer’s familiar face.

*

Star City - 2383

Felicity’s breath against the glass caused the outside of the window to frost as she looked out on the dark property of Queen mansion. Snowflakes swirled in the cold air, a dusty white layer covering the mausoleum she could barely make out in the night. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as the familiar burn of tears clouded her gaze. Another year passing without Oliver and the winters were growing colder and colder, both outside and within her heart.

She sighed heavily as she stood from the bench by the window at the end of the hall and made her way back to the tech room, shaking her head fondly at Curtis mumbling to himself.

“Got anything yet?”

Her voice caused the man to jump and turn. “I hate when you do that. But, uh, yeah, I got something, though I’m really confused as to what it is.”

Felicity tilted her head, scrunching up one side of her face in question.

Her partner gave her a quick chuckle and waved his hand towards one of the monitors. “This is the DNA sequence alignment for the sample you got from the vamp. It didn’t match anything in the current databases.”

“Which is why you had me hack into the archives yesterday.”

He nodded. “And I finally got a match. But, uh, that’s the weird part.”

Felicity quirked an eyebrow as Curtis stepped aside so she could read the monitor herself. As her eyes widened she clicked through screens to ensure she was seeing what she thought she was. “She was over 300 years old?”

Curtis nodded, huffing out air before responding. “And dead. Don’t forget that part. The DNA was from a police database. 23-year-old Claire Wilkins, strangulation while sedated, buried in a mausoleum in Starling Memorial Cemetery, re-interred at an undisclosed location when Star City needed to expand the stadium and the Cemetery lost historical preservation status.”

Felicity licked her lips, thinking through the new information. “Yeah, the argument was that the cemetery hadn’t been used in over a hundred years and they offered family the chance to claim relatives before the relocation. We had Quentin and some of our family and friends moved here to the Queen property.”

Curtis cleared his throat. “I need more samples, from previous vamps. To see if there’s a pattern.”

“And the records from the cemetery, on the relocations. See if we can figure out where the unclaimed were moved,” Felicity finished his thought as she made her way to her personal setup on the other side of the room, the one Curtis wasn’t allowed to touch. “I’ll start by looking for similar murders buried in the cemetery around the time Claire Wilkins was. You scour the SCPD database for any samples we might be able to get our hands on from the recent vamps.”

A week later the pair stood in the tech room staring at the monitor once again, speechless. Every vamp without an ID chip that they could get information on matched a sedated strangulation victim 300 years prior. The other pattern they found was even more startling. Those re-interred at the undisclosed location were all encountered near the clubs where Felicity had met Claire Wilkins. The others had been relocated by family to other burial plots in Star City.

Felicity blinked quickly and swallowed. “Something’s going on at those clubs.”

“Are we just ignoring the whole zombie vampire thing – there are thousands of bodies from that cemetery scattered all over the city, hell the state, potentially the country!” Curtis’ voice cracked, his fear coming through in both his words and his scent. Felicity laid a calming hand on his forearm.

“Hey. It seems to be a certain subset of victims from a specific time period, not everyone ever interred there.” She sighed before continuing, “Though you make a good point and we should check for other bodies showing up in other cities. I’ll start the cross-reference of victims with the same MO during the time period we suspect while you get some rest. Tomorrow you can take that information and start finding where they were moved so we know where to look.”

Curtis nodded. “Yeah, I am definitely not going to sleep knowing there are vampires rising from the dead, but I could really use a drink so I’m taking you up on your offer to get out of this room for a while.”

As Felicity let her algorithm work she pulled out the Bertinelli files. Something about this seemed familiar, and she hated mysteries.


	7. Old notes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A suspicious notebook makes an appearance.

**Star City – 2383**

Curtis found Felicity with her head in her hands, elbows braced on the desk as she swayed in the chair by the table she had covered with files and notebooks stained from years in storage. Calling her name failed to garner her attention so he cautiously approached her. She had never done anything to scare him personally, but he had seen enough of what she was capable of to be wary of surprising her.

“Felicity?” He tried one more time before stepping around her to enter her field of vision while still maintaining an arm’s length between them, not that it would save him if she decided he was a threat. As he rounded the table and finally caught a glimpse of her face he sucked in a breath. Her eyes were red and puffy, her lip trembling, and she had scratched long marks into her cheeks.

The blonde jumped a little in her seat as her glazed over vision cleared and she saw her friend across the table, his dark skin pale and his eyes concerned. She cleared her throat and wiped her face, shaking her head to focus her thoughts.

“Are you alright? Did something happen while I was gone?”

Felicity flashed a quick, half-hearted smile, her descended fangs reflecting the light as she stood and quickly started gathering the random items in front of her, stacking the papers into one crooked arm. “Yeah, I’m okay, I just think I figured out what’s going on. Or at least where to look.”

Curtis cleared his throat as he leaned forward to help her. “Do you need to eat?”

She stopped and tilted her head inquisitively at him.

“Well, umm,” he huffed out a small chuckle, his earlier fear making him nervous. “Your teeth are out.”

Surprised that she hadn’t known this, Felicity felt her lips with the fingers of her free hand before taking a deep breath. “Emotional response, but I’ll drink a little before I go out to be on the safe side.”

“Out where?”

The blonde handed him a notebook before responding, “The old Merlyn estate. I need to find any information on the project Malcolm worked on with the Bertinellis that we missed the first time.”

Curtis’s eyes widened. “First time?”

Felicity sighed. “The first time I helped clear out Malcolm’s shit, the first time the First of Many was a threat. And while I’m gone, I want you to use the database I hacked to look up the names in that notebook.”

“How are you going to get the occupants currently living there to let you in?”

Felicity smirked as she left the room, throwing over her shoulder, “Who says I’m going to ask permission?”

**

**Starling City – 2019**

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Oliver’s voice echoed in the empty mansion as he waited in the foyer for his friend to give the go ahead.

Tommy nodded. “Yeah. My dad’s been missing a year this time. Hopefully the bastard’s dead but in case he isn’t we need to know that we didn’t leave any stone unturned. Besides, this place is legally mine now, might as well pick out the furniture and art I want to keep.”

Felicity smiled as the trio walked further into the former home of the Merlyn family. “Where do you want to start?”

Tommy cleared his throat and offered her a tight smile. “His study. Might as well see if there’s an immediate danger before I start putting together bedroom sets for the auction.”

The blonde nodded. “I'm going to look for anything that could illuminate some of the notes we’ve kept the past few years. Bertinelli’s records on their little joint project were handwritten and like reading chicken scratch. Actually, he was so crazy by the end he probably thought he was a chicken.”

Oliver smiled and shook his head fondly at his wife’s thought process as they made their way to Malcolm’s study at the back of the house. Dust covered most surfaces in the house, but as they entered the study dust was noticeably absent.

Tommy sighed. “He’s been here.”

“Recently.” Oliver nodded.

Felicity glanced around the room. “Actually, there’s a pattern here. It seems pretty clean at first look because of how the rest of the house is, but some of the surfaces are still dusty. We should focus on the clean surfaces first. Oliver, can you open the curtains? The sunlight will help us see the difference.”

As her husband did as she asked Felicity focused on a digitally locked safe set into one of the bookcases. “Hey, Tommy. Do you know the code?”

The younger Merlyn glanced her way quickly before shrugging. “Nope.”

“Well then.” Felicity cracked her fingers. “Looks like I’ll need my tablet.”

Tommy and Oliver chuckled as they began going through the desk.

A few hours, an empty safe, and piles of unrelated paper later the trio sat in the kitchen discouraged.

“I can’t believe we found nothing.” Tommy sighed.

“I wouldn’t call it nothing.” Felicity rolled her eyes when he glared at her. “We found that notebook filled with names.”

Oliver rubbed her back as he spoke up. “We’ll just have to figure out what they mean.”

Felicity leaned into him. "I'll head back to the mansion. At the very least we'll stick it in with the stuff we compiled on Bertinelli just in case."

Her husband nodded. "I'll stay here with Tommy to help him load up the odds and ends. Dig's on his way to help with the furniture."

"Sounds good." She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and Tommy a wave as she left with the book in hand.


	8. Sagittarius

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity discovers Malcolm's secret

**Star City – 2383**

Felicity was thankful for the unusually balmy late winter weather as she hovered in the bushes at the edge of the property once owned by the Merlyns. The estate had shrunk as land was sold off, and the mansion had been renovated and passed hands several times over the centuries. The changes had been so thorough that she was certain that if there had been a hiding spot they hadn’t found that someone along the way would have. Consulting the maps she had pulled up from the city archives Felicity considered the possibility that Malcolm could have hid something elsewhere on the property.

She clicked her comm, waiting for Curtis to confirm he was on the other end. “Can you run some names for me, Terrific?”

“People, places, or things?”

Felicity smiled. “Property owners.”

“Current or historic?”

She sighed. “Let’s start with current since that will be easier.”

She heard Curtis’s close-mouthed confirmation before she read off the addresses now making up the original estate.

“Good news,” he responded soon after she had finished. “I got one that you will find very interesting. The first one I ran actually, which is really just our luck.”

“What is it?”

“The first address is the first parceled lot and it is currently owned by the same owner who originally bought it in 2035, a company called Sagittarius.”

Felicity’s eyes widened. “How is that possible?”

Curtis cleared his throat. “Malcolm Merlyn’s body never turned up right? Is it possible he’s still alive or at least lived long enough to pass on his super secret shell company?”

Felicity sighed and clenched her jaw. “I guess we’ll find out when I check out what he’s hiding there.” Using the shadows she made her way to the back of the old Merlyn estate, finding the undeveloped lot easily. Nothing stood out – the flat 3-acre lot wasn’t even fenced. Trash littered the ground among dead foliage and no one appeared to be taking care of it.

“Terrific? Can you pull up the satellite feed of this area? I’m thinking I might be looking for an underground structure.”

She heard the clicking noises of Curtis working as she let her eyes drift around her surroundings from where she stood in what seemed to be the center of the lot. A low humming noise caught her attention. Normally it would have been nothing out of place, but the sound of electricity in high voltage lines had no place in the middle of what was essentially a field. And there were no lines or poles, not even along the road.

“Felicity, you were right. There’s something underneath you. It looks like tunnels.”

“Can you check the electrical grid? See if there’s any running to this property.”

Curtis chuckled. “Wow, yeah, a lot of juice for an abandoned lot. And it looks like the lines go underground on the eastern edge of the property by the road and then exit via the house’s aboveground lines. There’s a meter but the account is paid automatically from an international bank account each month.”

“What’s the name on the account?”

Curtis sighed. “There isn’t one. Just an address in South America.”

Felicity nodded, mostly to herself. “Okay, so those tunnels. Any input on where to start?”

“The satellite image is clearer at the coordinates I’m sending you right now. Probably means that’s where they’re closest to the surface.”

Her watch lit up as the information came through, pointing about 50 feet to her left. She walked slowly, setting her feet down purposefully to test for differences in the ground that could indicate a hidden entryway. As she moved closer she realized there was a small incline and a give to the soil. Stepping back she cleared some of the dirt away in front of her, revealing a metal door. “Terrific! I found a door!”

“We’ll probably lose the comms when you go down there.”

She merely grunted in response before pulling at the handle. It was rusted and resistant, but her strength eventually won out and she was able to make her way down the steps. Using the LED spotlight on her watch Felicity quietly made her way into the tunnel, hearing her comm static when she got out of range.

“Guess it’s just me and the scary abandoned tunnel under the evil mastermind’s old property,” she muttered under her breath.

The tunnel was barren for nearly 50 yards before a couple other tunnels branched out. But the door at the end of the current hallway caught Felicity’s attention – more specifically the light that was coming from under it.

Sniffing the air Felicity caught only death. Not made-vampire death, just simply death, and it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. She stood still at the door, listening for 10 minutes to ensure she was alone before attempting to open it. As the door swung open a cold storage room was revealed, with cryo units along the back wall.

Off to the side she noticed a refrigeration unit with a paper log attached to it. The data seemed to pertain to the cryo units. Vials marked with the same numbering system, but dates listed starting before she was born until approximately 50 years ago.

She continued to survey the room, taking in the clinical quality to everything. As she turned her focus to the cryo units, she simply stopped breathing. Inside were bodies sans their heads, with tubing running out from what appeared to be the major veins and arteries. The scent in the air made Felicity’s eyes water. The death was clear, but the flesh was still functioning, creating and circulating blood that could be siphoned off via small spigots. These were the immortals – her father’s friends and family. Felicity’s fangs dropped as she growled out a single word and ran for the surface… “Malcolm.”

*****

**Sagittarius Lot, Star City - 2332**

Malcolm Merlyn knew that his luck was running out. He had survived this long on the immortal blood, but age had still crept up on him. He was expecting it after Oliver died, despite his work at purifying the immortal blood at his disposal. But Edward Smoak catching up with him was not something he was ready for.

“It’s not my time yet,” he mumbled to himself as he pulled vials from the refrigeration unit in his underground bunker. His cold case should keep them until he was safely in Corto Maltese where he had another lab setup. He had enough to keep him going for a few decades, maybe longer. Malcolm planned on maintaining this facility as long as he could though, just in case he had the chance to come back. And he was planning to be back – he was still far from his ultimate goal of real immortality. He just needed to lay low until he could get to her, to Felicity. He needed to study her genes, her anatomy, maybe if he could taste her…

Malcolm chuckled to himself. “I am definitely going to taste her.” Licking his lips as he closed up the room and headed back through the tunnels he smiled maniacally into the emptiness. “And then I’m going to kill her.”


	9. Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity stumbles on more than she thought possible

**Star City – 2383**

Felicity roamed the halls of Queen Mansion, clutching her phone tightly in her hand. She had tried calling her father the moment she breached the surface from Malcolm’s underground lab, but he hadn’t answered. ‘There’s no way of knowing where he is in the world’, she reminded herself. But assuring her mind that he could simply be sleeping was difficult when the stench of dead immortals still stung her nostrils. So she ignored Curtis’ questions in her ear and raced back home to start searching for her father electronically, never leaving her phone too far.

“Is it alright if I grab some shuteye while we wait for your dad?”

Felicity startled at her friend’s voice. Shaking her head to clear it she met his eyes with a hesitant grimace. “Sorry, Curtis, yeah. Go ahead and get some rest. I’ll wake you if I need you.”

Curtis swung his arms awkwardly as he tilted his head to assess the immortal before him. As he opened his mouth to say something he quickly shut it and sighed, laughing lightly to himself before turning and heading towards his room, throwing a “Goodnight” over his shoulder.

“Oh and, Curtis.”

He stopped and quickly turned around to face the blonde. “Yeah?”

“Thank you. I couldn’t do this without you.”

Her admission got her what she had aimed for, a bright smile on her friend’s face. “You’re welcome.”

Felicity made her way back to their computer room. As she sat in her chair, watching the facial recognition software and satellites sweep for any sign of Edward Smoak, she grew antsy. She swung herself toward Curtis’ station to go over the vampire sightings and victim registries again. A few hours later she ran for her friend’s room.

She banged loudly on the door before trying the knob. The door swung open as a half-naked Curtis jumped from the bed.

“Felicity? What the hell?” Taking in her wide eyes he quickly grabbed his glasses and headed towards her. “Did something happen?”

She shook her head. “No, I…I found the pattern.”

Curtis furrowed his brows. “You mean my algorithm?”

Felicity nodded. “I was working different angles while waiting for something on my dad. I…” She gulped and shook her head. “You need to see this. I think I might be going a little crazy.”

Curtis nodded and grabbed his shirt, putting it on as he followed his friend back down the hall. Sitting in his chair he went through the information Felicity had left up on his screen, his breathing speeding up as he put together the same pieces she had.

“Oh my god.”

“So I wasn’t just reading into it?”

Curtis shook his head. “Not if what you think you found was that all of the vampires worked for Merlyn, were murdered around the same time period, and had parents listed in Merlyn’s notebook.”

Felicity sighed. “Yep.”

“But why are they suddenly roaming around Glades?”

“I found the answer to that, too.” Felicity crossed the room and returned with an old map. “See this plot here? That’s the burial ground where the unclaimed were moved when they tore up the cemetery. In the section of Starling known as the Glades, the namesake for Glades Avenue.”

Curtis took the map and looked closer. “The clubs are right on top of that now.”

Felicity nodded. “And Sagittarius owned the land when it was sold to developers.”

Curtis closed his eyes and leaned his head back. “You have got to be kidding me.” Throwing his head forward again he looked at her. “Malcolm Merlyn probably planned this entire thing?”

The immortal sighed. “Looks like it. And what’s worse, he may still be alive.”

Curtis blinked quickly. “How?”

Felicity looked down and swallowed thickly, scuffing her toes on the floor. “What I found tonight. It’s been there longer than I’ve been alive, but someone accessed it as recently as 50 years ago.”

Before he can respond the mansion’s security sensors sound an alarm that causes both of them to jump. Quickly accessing the live feed on the cameras Felicity found the one focused on the intruder attempting to break into the kitchen door and stopped breathing. As she went completely still Curtis stepped up beside her and leaned in to see the isolated feed. The man wearing ragged and torn clothes was pounding on the door and appeared to be shouting something, his fangs catching the moonlight.

“It’s a vampire.”

Felicity’s sob wracked her whole body and she shook her head. “It’s Oliver.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not a drill....it is who they think it is...


	10. Reaction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They're getting closer to the truth

**Corto Maltese – 2345**

The sound of Malcolm’s fists hitting the stainless steel table echoed through the clean room, his frustration visible on his quickly aging face.

“Three hundred years and it fails me now!?” Spittle flew as he swept the vials of blood in front of him to the floor.

He stormed out of the lab and up the stairs to the main living area of the house he’d run to more than a decade ago. His First of Many project had been intended to prolong his life, but the test subjects he’d originally dosed weren’t affected in the way he’d intended. He later tested their offspring, hiring them as employees to keep an eye on them before kidnapping, sedating, and asphyxiating them to test the time delay and inheritance of the exposure. He had no success and had to dispose of the bodies in the streets, leaving the police with a stack of unrelated cold cases.

His only luck had been that drinking the immortals’ blood kept him from aging, allowing him to continue his experiments. Until now. Despite the more than adequate supply of samples he’d brought on the run, time had caught up with him.

Packing the few things he’ll need as he slumbers, Malcolm left his refuge behind for his last desperate attempt at immortality.

* * *

 

**Star City – 2383**

Curtis watched from the end of the hall as Felicity stood at the door to her bedroom. He had never seen her so still. She was slumped against the doorframe, one arm bent across her stomach to hold the elbow of the other. She seemed to have even stopped breathing.

“You do breathe though, right?” Curtis asked without thinking.

The blonde took a deep breath. “Usually.”

Her friend took a few anxious steps towards her. “What do we do now?”

“Wait for him to wake up.” She didn’t turn towards him as she stepped across the threshold. “Take a break, Curtis. I’ll call you when I need you.” And closed the door.

Curtis heard the lock engage before turning around and heading for the kitchen. He’d take her advice about rest after he cleaned up the mess the previously dead Queen had made after gaining entry to the house.

Once she recognized Oliver on the video feed Felicity hadn’t wasted time in running to him, Curtis right behind her. But what she had opened the door to was a frightened, glassy eyed vampire. He had run right past her while growling her name. Curtis was thankful that he’d seemed completely oblivious to the man’s presence as he cleared the countertop and tore through the cabinets, seemingly looking for the blonde immortal.

She had finally overcome him physically, holding his arms down as he settled his face against her shoulder, whimpering. She shushed him and eventually calmed him into sleep. Moving him to the bedroom had been the easiest part.

Curtis was pulling out the broom and dustpan to tackle the clumps of decay and dirt Oliver had left on the floor when he heard Felicity’s phone ringing from the computer room. Temporarily setting aside his clean-up plan he checked the caller id.

Felicity laid next to Oliver on the bed. He was breathing the deep, slow breaths of sleep. She ran a finger along his cheekbone, considering the lack of wrinkles she remembered from his final decades of life. Her brain couldn’t fathom how this was possible.

A knock on the door and Curtis’ quiet pleas for her attention had her slowly rising from her position beside her husband. She felt agitated that she had to leave his side so soon. Unlocking the door she opened it quickly to glare at her friend.

“What?!”

Curtis was taken aback by her demeanor but shook his head and held up her phone. “Your father has been trying to call you.”

Felicity sighed and closed her eyes. “Sorry.” Clearing her throat she focused on her friend and took the device from him. “Thank you, Curtis.”

He gave a small smile and a nod before heading back down the hall.

Felicity locked the door again and turned around to lean against it before calling her father back. He picked up on the first ring.

“Felicity! I’m sorry for not answering your calls sooner, but I found something.”

She huffed out a little laugh. “So did I. Two things actually.”

“I’m in Corto Maltese. I found a lab Malcolm was using.”

“Funny, I found a lab he was using here in Star City. Did yours have headless immortals in cryotubes, too?” Felicity meant to be nonchalant about it but the question came out high-pitched and pissed.

After a brief silence her father spoke through clenched teeth. “Where?”

“An underground bunker next to the old Merlyn estate.”

Her father sighed. “What was the second thing you found?”

“Oliver.” She answered quickly before covering her mouth for an unexpected sob. “He’s alive.”

“Alive? How?”

She shook her head and swallowed down the emotion. “I don’t know. He was looking for me but couldn’t see me. He seems a bit, I don’t know, feral. But he has been dead for more than 50 years so I’ll cut him some slack.” Her chest hitched without permission as her vision clouded again with tears. “It’s like the vampires all over the city. Disoriented and uncertain of who they are.”

Edward sighed. “Any clue who they were?”

“Curtis found that they were all homicide victims from about 300 years ago who were moved from the old Starling cemetery.”

“Shit.” Her father took an audible breath. “I found notes here. I know what Malcolm was doing. I’ll send the information to Curtis. Malcolm’s victims may match your vampires. If that’s the case then he’s the reason they’re waking up.”

“How?”

“He gave them his immortality serum but killed them when it didn’t work. Maybe it just had a delayed reaction.”

“Delayed reaction?” Felicity slumped to the floor. “What the hell?”


	11. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver wakes up

**Star City – 2383**

After going over everything with her father Felicity had remained on the floor, her back against the door, planning to keep watch over Oliver, but fell asleep. She was pulled from her slumber by an annoying fluttering on her cheek. Groggily mumbling her complaint and swiping at her own face she gasped when a hand grabbed her wrist. Jerking awake she acted out of instinct and bared her fangs, tensed to fight.

At some point while she was sleeping she had slumped to the floor, and now she found herself looking up at her husband as he kneeled over her – his eyes clear and bright. He still held her wrist gently but didn’t act on her response. Felicity swallowed heavily before speaking.

“Oliver?”

His lips curled up slightly. “Hi, sweetheart.”

Felicity’s chest heaved with a sob as she threw her arms around his neck. She snuggled her nose into his throat as he returned her embrace and allowed her to pull him to the floor.

“I can’t believe it. It’s really you.”

Oliver sighed. “I’m a little lost but, yeah, it’s me.”

Felicity sniffled and loosened her grip, letting him pull away enough to be eye to eye. “Lost how?”

Her husband shook his head and she noticed his dirty hair was longer than she had ever seen it. “I remember being sick. And I remember waking up outside. But I don’t know what happened in between.”

Felicity ran a finger down his cheek and gave him a tear-soaked smile. “A few decades of grief and longing.”

When he furrowed his eyebrows in question she pushed at his shoulders, silently asking him to get up. She led him into the bathroom and simply waited. The moment he saw his reflection he stopped. Oliver glanced back at his wife, who nodded in encouragement. He faced the mirror again and stepped forward to look closer. He felt and examined every inch of his face, searching for the aging he had accepted would show there.

After several minutes of silence, he finally asked her, “What happened?”

Felicity took a deep breath before answering. “You died.”

Oliver shook his head. “I’m right here.”

Felicity smiled. “Yeah, you are. But that doesn’t change the fact that I watched you take your last breath and buried you in the family mausoleum more than 60 years ago.”

She walked up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder, kneading the muscle.

“I feel strong. I look younger than I remember.” Oliver shook his head. “I don’t understand.”

Sighing, Felicity placed her chin on his shoulder. “I have a lot to fill you in on. And there’s someone you should meet. But first, you must be hungry.”

Oliver thought about it and nodded his head. “Yeah, I didn’t realize it, but I am, though not for blood. Kind of strange really.”

She shook her head as she took his hand and led him back out into the bedroom. “It isn’t actually. I generally don’t need blood and I’m pretty sure you’re an immortal now, too.”

Oliver had a lot of questions but kept quiet as his wife led him down the hall to the kitchen. He could see small changes in the house, evidence that he hadn’t been here just yesterday like his memories indicated. As Felicity made him a sandwich and soup and then sat across from him at the island to watch him eat she explained what she had been up to – starting with her charity work and then expanding into her father’s hunt for Malcolm.

“We’re getting close to him we think. I found an underground lab right here in Star City where he stored the bodies of the immortals he killed.”

“He killed them?”

Felicity nodded. “My dad found his notes in another lab in South America. He was trying to develop an immortality serum from a mixture of their and his blood. He was testing it on his employees, and later their kin.”

“Did it work?”

Felicity couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Turns out there’s a delayed reaction to gaining immortality from being dosed with immortal blood.”

Oliver cocked his head in confusion before he understood what she said. One corner of his lips quirked up. “You mean like needing to spend 60 years in the family tomb?”

She nodded and took his hands in hers now that he had finished eating. “Yeah, except Malcolm’s victims took a couple hundred years to wake up, and they were turned because of his blood in the mix, so I’ve been dealing with a slew of very confused new vampires. It seems some of the brainwashing he attempted is still coming through, too.” She scrunched up her nose. “They keep saying really weird things right before they attack me.”

Oliver sighed and squeezed her hands. “I’m sorry you were left alone.”

She removed one hand from his to place it on his cheek. “I missed you so much, but I wasn’t really alone. I had my dad, who by the way, has been convinced the world will be ending and Star City is the epicenter. So he’s been all sorts of clingy.”

Oliver laughed and turned to kiss the palm of her hand.

Felicity pulled her hand back and stood up. “And then of course there’s Curtis.”

Oliver clenched his jaw. “Please tell me that’s a pet.”

Felicity wrapped her arms around her husband’s shoulders. “I saved him from a vampire a couple years ago. He helps me on tech and has my back when I’m out there. I…” She placed her forehead against his and shivered. “There’s been no one since you.”

He nodded but remained silent.

Felicity leaned back and reached for his hands again, tugging him off the stool. “Come on. I want to introduce you.”

She led him to the computer room, where they found Curtis muttering to himself as he hunched over a device on the table. He obviously hadn’t heard them enter the room so Felicity cleared her throat.

Her partner jumped and spun around with a high-pitched squawk. When he realized who it was he put his hand over his heart and gasped. “Mrs. Queen! I hate it when you do that.”

Felicity smirked. “Last names? Really, Curtis?”

He cleared his throat. “Sorry. You surprised me and that’s how I refer to you in my head.”

Oliver couldn’t help but chuckle, drawing the man’s attention.

“And, uh, Mr. Queen. How, uh, it’s good…” he cleared his throat. “It’s good to see you up and around?”

Oliver stepped forward, offering Curtis a hand to shake. “It’s Oliver, Curtis. And I don’t think you meant that as a question.”

Curtis smiled and shook the offered hand. “I was going to ask how you were feeling but then changed my mind, but my mind didn’t realize it in time.”

Felicity choked on a laugh. “I was filling Oliver in on what we’ve been doing.”

Curtis wiped his hands on his pants and nodded seriously. “I don’t have anything new yet. I got the information your dad sent, we were right about who the new vamps are, but other than that I’m just working on some equipment that might come in handy if Malcolm Merlyn is still alive. Assuming that means he’s immortal now, too.”

Felicity shook her head. “He’d have to incubate like everyone else.”

Oliver scoffed. “I wasn’t incubating.”

Felicity offered him a patronizing smile and patted his bicep. “Of course you weren’t.”

The scowl he gave her caused her to throw back her head in laughter as her eyes teared up. “God, I missed you so much.”

He smiled and pulled her to him in a hug. “We have a lot of time to make up for it seems.”

She nodded against his shoulder before pulling back to look him in the eye. “But first, you need a haircut.”

He licked his lips. “Will it require wearing clothes?”

Before his wife could answer Curtis snorted. “Okay, that’s my cue. I’ll be working in my room. Holler when you’re all done reclaiming your house.”


	12. Hidden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They've finally got Malcolm's number

Star City – 2383

Twenty-four hours, two showers, and a haircut later Oliver Queen felt like a new man. After Curtis had excused himself from their presence Felicity had seemed nothing but elated to have her husband wrapped around her and he hadn’t had any trouble keeping up with her. It felt like 200 years had been shed from his body overnight. Only the truth of how this change had occurred kept him from whistling as he made his way to the tech room where Felicity should be. The broad grin though, that couldn’t leave his face even if he wanted it to.

He stopped in the doorway to admire the blonde woman whose existence had prolonged his own. She was bent over a table working on the new equipment Curtis had been developing in case they ran into an immortal Malcolm. She quickly glanced his way and smirked before returning to her work.

“Mr. Queen!” Curtis greeted him as he entered from the doorway to the kitchen.

“Please, Curtis. It’s Oliver,” He replied as he took a few steps into the room.

Curtis nodded. “Of course. Oliver. We’re just working through some of the information Mr. Smoak sent us on Merlyn’s victims. I think I’ve triangulated another hidden lab.”

Oliver furrowed his brows. “Another?”

Felicity sighed and looked up at her husband. “Yeah, it seems Malcolm’s work goes way back. Even before Bertinelli. And he hid it from everybody. He was obsessed with living forever.”

“And with you.” Curtis added without thinking. When the couple turned their attention to him he audibly swallowed. “Well, he was.”

Felicity set down her tools and gave Oliver’s confused look a small smile before making her way over to him. “He had a fascination with a regular human, i.e. my mom, having an immortal baby, me. He thought he could harness that information for himself. It seems his notes got super crazy after Helena turned me.”

Oliver nodded. “That explains some things. Is it safe for you to be looking for him then?”

Felicity sighed and wrapped her arms around her husband’s waist, his hands naturally falling to her shoulders. “If I can find him before he’s finishing incubating.” A corner of her lips quirked up at her husband’s glare for her choice of words. “If I can find him sooner rather than later, he’ll be easier to get rid of. My dad’s on his way. I won’t be going alone.”

Oliver hummed. “Of course you aren’t, because I’ll be going wherever you go.”

Felicity furrowed her brows. “What?”

Oliver chuckled at the look of surprise on her face. “Did you think I was just going to sit around while you do all the work?”

Felicity shook her head, her ponytail swishing against his hands. “But you just woke up.”

“And I feel fine. Better than fine.” Oliver sighed and ran a finger across his wife’s cheek. “I know you’ve been on your own for a while now, but I’m back. And I’m not going to let you do this alone.”

Felicity felt the tears welling up in her eyes and sniffled. “God, I’ve missed you so much.”

He leaned down slightly to place his lips against her forehead before speaking again. “I can’t imagine what it’s been like for you. I never wanted to leave. You must know that.”

She smiled and embraced him, rubbing her face into his chest. “I know. Somehow I always knew you’d be back. My father has been trying to convince me to move to Italy for decades and I just couldn’t.”

Oliver stilled before squeezing her tighter. “Italy actually sounds kind of nice. I assume he’s talking about your family estate.”

“Yeah, he says bad things are coming and it’s safer if we’re together there.”

Oliver smiled and called out to the man they’d been ignoring. “Ever been to Italy, Curtis?”

The man shook his head. “Never had the opportunity.”

Felicity looked up at her husband and smiled. She knew exactly what he was thinking. So she turned towards her partner. “It looks like you’ll have the chance once we dispose of Malcolm.”

Curtis gave her a small smile before clearing his throat. “Yeah, about that. Based on the tests we’ve run and all of the information I’ve been able to integrate into my model I think taking Merlyn down is going to be more difficult than you think.”

Felicity stepped around the desk to look at whatever Curtis was about to show her. “How so?”

“Obviously your blood is more potent than the other immortals’, for whatever reason. Oliver came back after only 60 years, it took a couple hundred for the ones Merlyn dosed.”

“I also used to drink from Felicity several times a week,” Oliver interrupted.

Curtis nodded. “And as far as we know Merlyn only gave his victims a couple doses before killing them. But there are differences in Felicity’s blood and the samples from the bunker. I’m just saying, if he got a hold of some of Felicity’s blood before he disappeared, we could be looking at a completely different set of problems than we’re preparing for.”

“Like what?” Felicity asked quietly.

“Like waking up before we think he will. Super duper super strength. I mean he’s a born vampire who kept himself alive with immortal blood and then attempted to turn himself. He’s aiming for something here beyond living forever.”

Felicity sighed. “That’s why he sided with Bertinelli during the war. That’s why they tried to kidnap me. Malcolm wanted me, my blood. I was the weapon he was looking for, not Bertinelli’s brainwashing techniques. Me.”

Oliver stepped up behind his wife and pulled her against his chest, whispering in her ear. “Hey, we don’t know that for certain.”

She huffed. “No, we do, Oliver. It’s the final puzzle piece. It all makes sense now. Everything our families went through all those years ago. He was after me.”

“And then he stopped.” Curtis spoke up again. “He hid himself away. As far as we know he’s now incubating. So what changed?”

Central City – 2383

The Merlyn bunker in the old subway system was silent except for the one still active cryounit. The old vampire who’d tended to it for nearly 40 years slowly crept in at dawn. He knew his time was coming to an end, but it didn’t matter. Today’s dose was the last in the many vials his master had brought to him before he had gone to sleep. After today his job was done.

He started up the infusion pump and removed the final vial marked FS from the small refrigerator attached to the stasis unit. Filling a small syringe he injected the red solution into the lines leading into the stasis unit and waited for the cycle to finish before powering the unit down one final time. He set the timer on the cryounit for 60 days as he had been instructed to do after the final dose.

He secured the door behind him as he made his way out of the bunker and into the sunlight for the first, and last, time since his human death. Fulfilling his master’s wishes.


	13. Blood games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They finally figure out Malcolm's plan.

**Star City – 2383**

Felicity chastised herself for missing it, but given her emotional response the first time she was in the bunker, it wasn’t all that surprising.

When she and her father had found that the bunker in Central City was empty, they took the time to look for as much information as possible, hopefully something that would put them out in front of Malcolm instead of chasing him from behind. But it’s what Oliver found outside that had them racing back to the bunker in Star City.

Malcolm had setup a system to pump from the cryounit in Central City into the groundwater, and from a centrifuge system in the Star City bunker into the groundwater. The one in Central City was dry, but the one in Star City had quite obviously been used. They collected samples for Curtis to analyze and refused to acknowledge that Malcolm being awake was not a good sign.

“So, he woke early, huh?” Curtis asked as soon as the immortals entered the Queen mansion.

Oliver rolled his eyes and headed for the gym as Felicity sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. Edward Smoak grimaced and handed over the samples. “Analyze these please. I’m going to shower the underground stench off.”

As her father went up the stairs Felicity was left standing in front of her friend, who scrunched up his face before addressing her, “Sorry, I guess we aren’t talking about that?”

She couldn’t help but snort out a laugh, “About what? The fact that this just keeps getting harder. Yeah, no, we aren’t talking about it until there’s something we can do about it.” She smiled before continuing, “So, you want some help with the analysis.”

Curtis offered her a smile. “No, you go ahead and get cleaned up. I’ll yell when I’ve got something.”

The blonde made her way through the house to search for her husband. She found him letting out his aggression on the salmon ladder. “Yes, please,” she muttered under her breath as she brought her lower lip between her teeth.

Oliver dropped from the horizontal pole with a laugh. “You’re not as subtle as you think you are.”

As he turned towards her Felicity sauntered towards her husband, tilting her hips invitingly and reaching for his hips. “Who said I was being subtle?”

Oliver smiled and kissed her nose as she embraced him. Rubbing her arms with his hands he sighed. “We should probably talk about what we’ve found.”

Felicity shook her head vehemently, her hair swinging wildly. “No, I told Curtis it’s not open for discussion until we have something we can do about it. So we’re going to shower and play, and then we’ll deal with it all later.”

Oliver chuckled. “Really?”

His wife smiled brightly. “Yeah. I prefer when you’re happy, and that’s what we need right now.”

 

**Central City - 2 weeks earlier**

Malcolm opened his eyes as the cryounit released its cover with an automated hiss. Stretching his hibernating muscles he slowly stepped out of the unit. Taking time to get his bearings he slowly dressed and prepared himself for his entry into the world as an immortal. Exiting the bunker he checked on his groundwater system. Disappointed that it had failed to work as he slept he made his way towards the house of the faithful he’d left in charge of it. Someone was going to die today. And then he’d have to find another way to contaminate the world with his now immortal blood.


	14. Boxed in

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Malcolm can't run

**Star City - 2383**

“So, the stuff being pumped into Star City’s groundwater? It’s Malcolm’s blood, pre-immortality from what I can tell.” Waiting to make sure he had the attention of the other three occupants of the room Curtis moved to his computer where the analysis results were displayed. “I got a hold of some water quality samples from the city department and found that it seeped into the ground around the Glades, but is absent from the drinking water. So, it’s probably what turned his previous victims we were dealing with but won’t affect the population at large. Yet.”

Oliver raised an eyebrow. “Yet?”

“If he had succeeded in Central City, it would’ve pumped his immortal vampire blood into the drinking water.”

“But he didn’t succeed, right?” Felicity scrunched her nose, making Oliver’s lips curl slightly in fondness.

Curtis sighed. “I found more bunkers. He has them all over. Any one of them could be setup similarly. He could be planning on trying again at any one of them, or any I didn’t find.”

“Well, we’ll start with the ones you did find. Any with proximity to water sources that would be more likely candidates.”

Curtis nodded. “Yeah, there’s one just outside the Glades near the water treatment plant. It’s an old electrical substation so no one noticed the electrical spike, but it’s owned by Sagittarius.”

Felicity smiled and patted his shoulder. “Good work, Curtis. We’ll go check it out.”

* * *

 

Malcolm had been expecting they’d find him eventually, but he had thought there’d be more time. That he would succeed in venting his systems into the groundwater and achieving what he had worked so long for. But every where he turned he was hampered by decades of negligence on the part of the faithful he’d left to tend to his empire. They were either already gone or moved on to other gods. He had overestimated his power over them.

Huffing in annoyance, Malcolm watched his former best friend from across the deserted lot outside the former electric substation near the Glades. “Edward, I’d say it’s good to see you but I do believe the circumstances say otherwise.”

The immortal sighed deeply, raising an eyebrow at the demented vampire. “Yes, I believe they do.”

Malcolm smirked. “Why are you here? I’m not the weak vampire I was before. You can’t stop me.”

Felicity stepped up beside her father. “Having some mechanical issues?” Malcolm’s face dropped, a frown settling heavily. “Want some help with that? Or maybe we just prevent it altogether?” She turned to her father, mocking Malcolm with the semblance of a discussion of his failure. “What do you think?”

Edward Smoak huffed in amusement. “I think prevention is the key, my dear.”

Felicity nodded, offering Malcolm a fake toothy smile. “Prevent it is.”

“You cannot take me.” Malcolm snarled. “I am stronger than when I killed immortals before. I can take the two of you!”

“But can you take three?” Oliver asked from behind him.

Malcolm swung around, his eyes wide. “You’re dead.”

Oliver stretched the muscles in his neck, showing off the axe he held in his hands. “So are you.”

Malcolm leapt for the door of his bunker, unaware that the other immortals had quickly made their way towards him. His arms were held against him as strong hands grabbed his head and twisted. He felt the snap before his limbs numbed, becoming useless. No longer able to breathe in order to force out his voice, he could do nothing but mouth the words of his discontent.

“Umm…” Felicity let go of his upper body, letting him flop to the ground. “I thought that’d kill him.”

Edward shook his head and reached out towards Oliver. “Axe?”

Oliver nodded and handed the tool over silently.

Edward sighed. “You deserve so much more than a quick death, old friend.”

Malcolm’s eyes grew huge as his mouth continued moving in silent rants and Felicity’s father dropped the sharp blade on his neck. Detaching a head, especially that of an immortal vampire, was a more difficult task than they had imagined it to be, so Felicity left her husband and father to the gruesome task to ensure the bunker was secure. It had malfunctioned similar to the one in Central City. She hoped it would be a theme when they moved on to clear out his others in the future.

When she returned to the lot outside the bunker the only thing left of Malcolm in the grass was his head, which stared drowsily into space, the lips still moving.

“He looks like a gasping fish.”

Oliver huffed out a laugh at his wife before turning to his father-in-law. “What do we do with it?”

“We’ll lock it away until it dies. It could take a while. But we’ll burn his body. There’ll be no coming back for him.”

Felicity took a deep breath in relief. “Good to know. Now let’s go home.”

 

**Queen Mansion, Starlight City, 2854**

November 1, the Day of the Dead. They had chosen this day for their annual ritual out of a macabre sense of humor. Felicity chuckled to herself as her husband opened the hidden door inside the family crypt. They had trekked home from her father’s estate in Italy to once again look upon their stolen treasure, hoping it would be the last time it was needed.

Pulling out a covered box hidden in an alcove Oliver wasted no time in opening it. Sighing in relief he smiled at his wife.

“What?”

“It’s done.” He tilted it so she could see. The withered shrunken head of Malcolm Merlyn was finally still.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, it's over! Finally finished! lol Sorry it took so long.


End file.
